''They are great players,'' McQuain said. ''Let me tell you
what, Thomas is outstanding. She is very comfortable with the ball.
Being on the floor with talent like that is kind of humbling. We
did really extremely well in the NEC, not losing a game, and then
coming here and playing against a really good ACC team kind of
opens our eyes a little bit.''

The fourth-seeded Terrapins trailed by nine in the first half,
scrambled to go up 27-23 at the break and dominated the second half
against the smaller Bobcats, who couldn't stop Thomas' repeated
forays into the lane.

''You just give her the ball and let her go to work,'' Maryland
coach Brenda Frese said. ''She's like a life vest - she can bail
out anyone and anything. You saw her versatility. She was able to
change the game. They didn't have an answer.''

Despite the loss, the Bobcats were delighted to become the first
Quinnipiac women's basketball team to play in the NCAA
tournament.

''This is clearly a top 10 team that was a different level that
we hadn't seen, but this was the stage we were ready for,'' Bobcats
coach Tricia Fabbri said of Maryland. ''We have now set a new
standard and raised the level of excellence for this program going
forward.''

Quinnipiac played well for much of the first half, but very
little went right for the Bobcats after that. Maryland opened the
second half with a 14-3 run to go up 41-26, and Quinnipiac couldn't
score with enough consistency to make up the difference.

''I don't think they've seen a team like us, that's able to
rebound and run,'' Thomas said. ''They found it very hard to match
up with all of us.''

During the first 10 minutes after the break, Quinnipiac was 2
for 22 from the floor while being outscored 22-9. The Bobcats
finished with a 23 percent field-goal percentage on 17-for-74
shooting.

''We just couldn't put the ball in the basket,'' lamented guard
Gillian Abshire, who had more turnovers than baskets (2-1).

Both teams had 22 rebounds at halftime, but Maryland finished
with a 59-41 advantage. Alicia DeVaughn grabbed a career-high 17
for the Terps.

''I think we were able to wear them down. You could see that in
the second half,'' Frese said. ''We still wanted to continue to
push tempo. Obviously we were disappointed in our rebounding at
halftime. Credit them. They were physical, and I thought they gave
us their best punch in the first half. But I do think our size, our
physicality, our length, athleticism, Alyssa Thomas got to them.
She gives you about three extra bodies out there in terms of her
play.''

Thomas scored 12 points on 6-for-9 shooting in a shaky first
half for the Terrapins, who needed a closing 15-2 run to take the
lead.

The 11:15 a.m. start produced shoddy play by both teams at the
outset. Although the Bobcats missed seven of their first eight
shots, Maryland started 4 for 20 from the floor. The Terrapins
trailed 21-12 before Thomas made a layup to spark a 9-0 spurt that
included five points by Hawkins.

Maryland went 1 for 9 from beyond the arc in the first half.
Quinnipiac's Ellen Cannon connected on all three of her 3-point
tries before halftime.

Related Stories

Member Comments

Please note by clicking on "Post comment" you acknowledge that you have read the Terms of Use and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms. Be Polite. Inappropriate posts may be removed by the moderator.